Golf cart accessory

Abstract

A golf cart accessory in the form of a flexible woven ballistic fabric tote bag with a zippered top and a rearwardly offset strap, the attachment points of which to the tote are spaced apart by approximately the same distance as the distance between the vertical portions of a seatside-assist handle on a golf cart, whereby the strap may be looped over the golf cart seatside-assist handle to provide auxiliary storage for personal items without taking up space in the passenger compartment of the golf cart. The strap is preferably adjustable in length so that the tote may also be carried on the shoulder of the user. A small zippered case is tethered to the tote near one end of the zipper path.

1 . A golf cart accessory in the form of a personal tote adapted for attachment to an upstanding, closed-ended seatside-assist handle on the golf cart seat box comprising:
 a six-sided rectangular body of flexible, water resistant synthetic material, including a top, a bottom, opposed end panels and front and rear major panels;   a zipper closure installed in the top and extending over substantially the entire distance between said end panels for providing access to the interior of the body; and   a single hanging strap having the opposite ends thereof attached to the body at fixed attachment points about 14 inches apart and rearwardly offset from the longitudinal center line of the top panel so as so lie directly adjacent the rear panel the strap may be looped over the assist handle to hang the tote adjacent the vertical side of the golf cart seatbox.   
     
     
         2 . The article defined in  claim 1  further comprising a flat strip of stiffening material approximately equal in length between the distance between the end panels and affixed to the rear panel near the top to prevent longitudinal collapse of the tote. 
     
     
         3 . The article defined in  claim 1  wherein the material of construction of said body is woven ballistic polyester. 
     
     
         4 . An article as defined in  claim 1  wherein the overall longitudinal dimension of said body between said end panels is approximately 17 inches and the distance between the attachment points of the strap to the tote is in the range between 11 and 14 inches. 
     
     
         5 . The article as defined in  claim 1  where the length of the strap is adjustable. 
     
     
         6 . The article as defined in  claim 1  further comprising a small, flexible auxiliary case attached by means of a tether to the top of the tote near the end point of the zipper whereby the case can be dropped into the interior of the tote but remain attached to the tote. 
     
     
         7 . In combination:
 a golf cart having a passenger seatbox with vertical sides and left and right opposite, closed-ended seatside-assist handles; and   a personal tote adapted for removable attachment to a seatside-assist handle of the golf cart and comprising a six-sided rectangular body of flexible, water resistant synthetic material, including a top, a bottom, opposed end panels and front and rear major panels;   a zipper closure installed in the top and extending over substantially the entire distance between said end panels for providing access to the interior of the body; and   a single hanging strap having the opposite ends thereof attached to the body at fixed attachment points rearwardly offset from the longitudinal center line of the top panel so as to lie directly adjacent the rear panel the distance between the attached ends being marginally greater than or equal to the maximum longitudinal dimension of the assist handle, said strap being looped over the assist handle such that the tote hangs adjacent a side of the golf cart seatbox.   
     
     
         8 . The combination defined in  claim 7  further comprising a flat strip of stiffening material approximately equal in length between the distance between the end panels and affixed to the rear panel near the top to prevent longitudinal collapse of the tote. 
     
     
         9 . The combination defined in  claim 7  wherein the material of construction of the body is a woven polymer. 
     
     
         10 . The combination as defined in  claim 7  wherein the overall longitudinal dimension of the body between said end panels is between 16 and 15 inches and the distance between the attachment points of the strap is in the range between 11 and 14 inches. 
     
     
         11 . The combination as defined in  claim 7  where the length of the strap is adjustable. 
     
     
         12 . The combination as defined in  claim 7  further comprising a small, flexible auxiliary case attached by means of a tether to the top of the tote near the end point of the zipper whereby the case can be dropped into the interior of the tote while remaining tethered to the tote. 
     
     
         13 . (canceled) 
     
     
         14 . A method of utilizing the golf cart accessory described in  claim 1  comprising the steps of:
 a. adjusting the length of the strap to correspond to the longitudinal dimension of a closed-ended assist handle on the side of a golf cart; and 
 b. looping the length adjusted tote bag strap over and around the assist handle so that the tote bag hangs down against the vertical side of the golf cart seat box.